Last Man Standing: characters

Zoe Hesketh (played by Miriama Smith)

The term ‘take no crap’ was coined with Zoe in mind. At least, these days it is. Back when she was married to Cameron, plagued with insecurities and waiting for the other shoe to drop (which it inevitably did), Zoe put up with everything and hated herself for it.

It certainly wasn’t the future she had in mind when she met Cameron back in New Zealand. She was a wild girl who loved to travel, and he was a backpacker doing the rounds of the island. Zoe was looking for someone to move into her shared apartment and fell for Cameron the minute she laid eyes on him. After three months together, he asked her to shut up shop in New Zealand and come back to Australia with him. And without a second’s hesitation, Zoe bid farewell to her unconvinced family and moved to Melbourne.

When her marriage fell apart, so did she. She headed straight back home to get herself together and to get over Cameron. Leaving him was the hardest thing she’s ever done, since Cameron is the only man Zoe has ever loved—if you don’t count Derek Myers, age 16-18, which Zoe doesn’t. She’s a monogamous girl who was quite ready for all that ‘richer/poorer/sickness/health’ bizzo. She just didn’t expect ‘faithful/unfaithful’ to come into the equation. Zoe forgave on more than one occasion (yes, no need to bring it up, she hates herself for that too) for the sole reason that she wanted desperately for things to right themselves. They didn’t. She walked. And now, after a definite cooling-off period, she’s curious to see if she can have a civil relationship with the man she once called ‘husband’. And so when work offers her a transfer to the Melbourne office, Zoe doesn’t say no.

Zoe hates the term ‘one of the guys’, but when she’s with Adam, Bruno and Cameron it’s inevitably the role she plays. Unfazed by dirty talk and unimpressed with their chest beating, she is deeply fond of all three at the same time as being utterly fed up with their constant self-obsessing. Zoe’s ready to move, change things, get involved in life. And while she humours the bitching and moaning over womankind our trio indulge in, she has moments of needing a break. The friendship can get a little claustrophobic.

Adam and Zoe enjoy a comfortable rapport and an underlying trust. Zoe’s very comfortable with her sexuality (just because she only had one boyfriend before Cameron, doesn’t mean she didn’t make the most of her single ‘patches’) and knows now more than ever what she wants and needs in a lover. She’s a long way off throwing herself into a relationship again—and, if truth be told, is probably subconsciously waiting for Cameron to change his ways—but she’s quite willing to enjoy a succession of suitors in the meantime.